Namco Announces System 246 Arcade Hardware

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The company's new PS2-based arcade system will power Ridge Racer V and much, much more.

By IGN Staff

Several Japanese news sources are reporting that Namco has announced the official name of their new PlayStation 2-based arcade hardware. According to the tradition of nomenclature, the new hardware will be called System 246. System 246 will be based on the same fundamental elements as PlayStation 2 - the Emotion Engine and Graphics Synthesizer chips - and also take advantage of PS2's ability to interface with CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, and hard drive storage media, offering flexibility in data storage and transfer to arcade game developers.

The first game to run on System 246 will be the already-announced Ridge Racer V Arcade Battle, but Namco has plans to develop other games for the hardware, and also to license the hardware to other arcade and home developers. Part of the System 246 strategy is to allow console developers interested in creating games for the arcade to use a hardware system that they may be a little more familiar with - portability from home to arcade, like that which has been so successfully put in to practice by Sega with their Naomi hardware, was also certainly a factor in choosing to bring the PS2 hardware to the arcades.

System 246 will be unveiled to the world, along with RRV Arcade Battle (and the new Ridge Racer race queen), at the 38th AM show in Tokyo on September 21-23. IGNPSX will be in town for the show, as well as the Tokyo Game Show, and so you can expect coverage of the new hardware from us as soon as it's revealed.